


it was the end of a decade but the start of an age

by badwolfgirl13



Category: Supernatural
Genre: 5+1 Things, Bisexual Krissy Chambers, Dean Winchester Likes Taylor Swift, Found Family, Ghosts, M/M, POV Outsider, Parent Castiel (Supernatural), Parent Dean Winchester, Vampires, mild homophobia, my first fanfic so we'll see how this goes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-17
Updated: 2021-02-01
Packaged: 2021-03-15 05:16:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,372
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28807956
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/badwolfgirl13/pseuds/badwolfgirl13
Summary: Dean Winchester has met a lot of people during his life, girlfriends, hunters, monsters, people that cared. Not many stayed, but the ones that did became his family.OrFive Times People Recognize Dean and One Time They Actually Know Him.
Relationships: Castiel/Dean Winchester
Comments: 17
Kudos: 78





	1. the monster

James likes to think he only kills people because he has to. He knows it isn’t true. There are other options. He could feed off people without killing them. He could drink blood bags or drain animals but he enjoys killing them. He likes watching the life drain out of his victims' eyes. He always had, ever since he was first turned. His nest agrees. They’ve always killed people, never regretting it. Enjoying the taste of terrified humans’ warm blood as their eyes widen and fill with pain and fear until they slump down, unconscious from blood loss.

When Dean Winchester pulls into town in his big, black muscle car that’s filled to the brim with weapons and Dead Man's Blood and his deadly angel his nest isn’t nearly as worried as they should be. He’s heard about the Winchester’s. Their ruthlessness and incomparable skills in hunting monsters, demons, and angels. They have stopped more apocalypse than should even happen in anyone’s lifetime. They’ve fought and beat leviathan, alphas, and Eve, the mother of all monsters. He recognizes that his nest should be scared, but years of evading hunters has made them overconfident, making them feel invincible. 

\----

That night James heads into town without the rest of the nest, knowing that it would likely be his last night on earth. The bar he chooses is dark and shady enough that there will be easy pickings. Someone, probably a young girl lacking enough self-esteem to keep her out of there, naive enough to go with a tall, dark stranger for the thrill and have one last hurrah before he will be killed by these hunters. He didn’t expect to see the hunter and his angel at the bar, let alone all over each other.

It seemed like they couldn’t stop touching each other, holding hands, a hand on the others' shoulder or back, legs bumping together under the bar, feet twining together. They were laughing and having a good time, obnoxiously in love.

James couldn’t help himself. He didn’t know if it was morbid curiosity or his poor survival skills the nest was always talking about (despite the fact that he was the only one to ever worry about hunters) but he approached the bar and sat down, ordering himself a whiskey. He knew he should have hightailed it out of there as soon as he saw them, but he wanted to know more about these men that seem so harmless and in love despite being known across the supernatural world as the deadliest hunters in the world.

At his place at the bar, he can hear their conversation. And they're arguing about… Taylor Swift? From what he could understand they both have very strong opinions about what era of her music is better.

“Cas, Babe, clearly folklore, and evermore are the superior era. On aesthetic alone, the woods, the fields, nature shit. It’s just superior.” the light haired man was saying. Completely seriously. Wow, Dean Winchester, Defeater of God, was talking about Taylor Swift, pop queen.

Cas was clearly fired up by this argument and responded in his too deep voice, “Talk about the aesthetic all you want but Lover is clearly superior. She was so clearly in love and happy when she wrote this and her purely human joy is contagious.” The entire time he was talking Dean was looking at him with the most obvious heart eyes James had ever seen. Honestly, it was sick. “I especially loved Paper Rings.”

“Bee, you know that one is too pop-y for me,” Dean argues back, Cas is looking at him like he hung to the moon, even as he disagrees with him. “Plus the last two albums remind me of us.” the blush that takes over his face is obvious and Cas softens, “don’t you dare ever tell anyone I said that, especially Sam.”

“I know, I know, Dean, ‘don’t tell anyone I listen to Taylor, it’ll ruin my reputation,’ You know you don’t have to worry about people knowing you like her music, it’s not gonna change how they see you.” Somehow, these two men go from laughing and playfully arguing about pop music to having sickeningly sweet conversations. It must be a nightmare to live with them.

James was enthralled by them. These hunters, known for being these badasses who kill with no hesitation, unstoppable, undying, being so casual, so normal. It was like he was looking into some sort of an alternate reality, where no one knows of the supernatural, and they were just normal men. It almost made him forget that they would spell his doom.

\----

By the time James stumbled back to the barn outside of town where his nest was currently crashing, the sun was high in the sky. His hangover that much worse because of it, stinging skin and a piercing headache that would not ebb. He hadn’t had any luck the night before in finding anyone to feed on, no one to enjoy his last night with. So he had got magnificently drunk and passed out in a ditch. He got inside the barn and sighed with relief, headache abating and skin soothed by the low lighting inside. He collapsed on to one of the piles of hay left on the ground and fell asleep, momentarily forgetting the danger they were in, in his relief.

What felt like seconds later he was jolted awake by the sounds of fighting, heads falling to the ground, machetes swinging through the air, and bodies losing momentum and hitting the dirt. James couldn’t believe he had forgotten, had fallen asleep while his life and the lives of his entire nest were in danger.

He leapt up and rushed towards the couple. Knowing that these were his last moments. Despite that, he had to admit they had style. They stood back to back protecting each other's six, effortlessly communicating and ganking the vamps that the other missed. As James reached them, he was shocked by the duality of these men. Just the night before they were acting like the most unassuming couple, arguing about small things and talking about the other like they were everything, like nothing else in the world mattered. And now they were killing vamps left and right. No arguments, no problems, no sappy romantics, just smooth communication, and the need to protect the other. With these last thoughts, he saw a machete coming towards his neck and realized he didn’t even touch them and neither had anyone else. The only blood on them was not their own.


	2. the ex

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope y'all enjoy. This is my least favorite chapter but they should get better from here.

When Cassie walked into Freddie’s on a Tuesday night the last person she expected to see was Dean Winchester. Shocked thoughts flew through her head. The first being that maybe he didn’t even know that Freddie’s was anything other then a normal dive bar in Middle America. Next, she realized that wasn’t possible, multiple signs outside boasted the fact that they were the only gay bar for miles around. Let alone the interior design. Pride flags hanging around the place and many visibly queer people hanging out and getting drinks, despite the fact that it was a Tuesday. The most shocking revelation that she had had in a while was what came next. Dean Winchester, poster boy for the red-blooded American man stereotype was queer. Guess it’s true what they say about gay people flocking together before they even know that they’re queer.

With these distracting thoughts, she didn’t see Dean look up or see the spark of recognition in his eyes until he exclaimed “Cassie, it’s been too long. How’ve you been?” shocking her out of her reverie.

“Oh my god, Dean, it’s been years. I’ve been doing well, mostly. How ‘bout you?”

“I’ve been busy, life’s changed a lot in 16 years. Done a lot of hunting but my partner and I are thinking of retiring, opening a bar or something. Getting out of the life.” Dean said with a smile. He seemed different, older but undeniably happy. I wonder what he’s seen since we last spoke, what he’s done, and what put that soft, happy look in his eyes. Then what he said finally caught up with her. 

“Must be quite a person, to get you to stop hunting.” He was really going two for two with things that are shocking her today. She never imagined that Dean Winchester would give up hunting. Retire and live a normal life, or as much of one as someone that knew about the supernatural could get.

“He’s the best. We’ve only been together about a year, but we knew each other for years before that, almost -- Damn -- it’s been almost fifteen years since we met. Jesus Christ, I’m getting old.” A lost look appears on his face, reminiscing about his past with the mysterious “he.” “He’s amazing, one of the most caring people I’ve ever met. He always wants to fix everything and when he can’t it destroys him. He’s --” Dean cuts off, embarrassed.

“No, No, you don’t have to stop, it’s cute. And good to know that you’re happy.” And she meant it. Even if she’d moved on she has worried about what happened to Dean, what he was doing now.

“Yeah, I’m happy, the happiest I’ve ever been I think,” Dean says, seeming to mean it, “But enough about me. How’s your life going, what have you been up to?”

“I’ve been pretty busy lately. Got a new job, I’ll be writing front-page news, finally. I just moved into a new house with my wife, we’re hoping to adopt an older kid and need more space. We don’t know what we're doing we just want to make --” she cut herself off. “Sorry, you probably didn’t want all that, I’m just excited.”

“No, No, I get it. My boyfriend and I just bought a bar, were actually trying to get it to be something like this but for hunters and stuff, give them the support they need, point them in the direction of hunts, give them a place to crash, some stability, especially the young ones. Over the years we’ve basically adopted them, even before we were together.” Cassie couldn’t believe it, the playboy extraordinaire, settling down with a man, adopting a whole bunch of kids. Neither of them could have seen where their lives were going at 26.

“Oh, there he is. Sunshine, over here.” Cassie looked over to where Dean was waving and was met with the sight of a tall man with dark, wild hair, wearing dark jeans, a white button-up shirt, and a well-worn leather jacket. His outfit didn’t fit his pet name but his face did, he lit up like a Christmas tree when he saw Dean.

“Bee, this is Cassie, Cassie this is my partner Cas.” Dean introduces, almost reverently, clearly deeply in love with the man standing next to him with a hand on his shoulder.

“Cas, huh” Dean blushes at that, face turning bright red, hand coming up to rub the back of his neck. But, a laugh is startled out of Cas, and with that Dean’s demeanor completely changes, blush fading and his own laugh fighting its way out. “It’s nice to meet the man that made this one settle down.” 

“It’s nice to meet you too Cassie.” Cas’s voice is a shock to her system, so deep it seems like it would hurt to speak.

Dean gets the attention of the bartender and orders a beer for himself and Cas and looks at her offering to get another. Shaking her head, she has to get going soon and needs to be able to drive. 

“Tell me more about your kids, you got any tips for me about dealing with teenagers?” You wouldn’t think it was possible for them to smile any wider than they were just by being in each other's presence but mentioning their kids does it. They sit there beaming with pride going on and on about Jack, a Nephilim, a half-angel half-human. because those exist too, who’s 4 but looks like a teenager and was God for a hot second before giving up the power, transferring it to God’s sister, Amara, who also apparently exists. Cassie gave up trying to understand anything about their lives but it was clear they couldn’t be more proud of him. Dean pulled up a picture on his phone with him, Cas, a boy who must be Jack, and another girl who looks about 20.

She learns her name is Claire and she’s a hunter, a good one at that, and Dean and Cas see her as her daughter, but it's also another confusing story about how they know her. It’s so obvious how proud they are of her. How she’s hunting and going to school. She’s majoring in history with a minor in Latin, things that will help her hunt, they said. 

They also give her advice, saying it’s important to let them have freedom and have open conversations about why they don’t want them to do something. But also listen to the kid's side of the story, let them make their mistakes, and be there when they need them. 

It’s approaching midnight when Cassie gets a text from her wife, asking about when she’ll be home. So, with parting words, the exchange of numbers, and promises of more advice when they finally adopt, she goes home and looks forward to her future. Comforted by the knowledge that they wouldn’t be unprepared when they finally adopt a kid that really needs them. That they’ll be able to provide the support the kid needs.


	3. the kid

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Krissy's bi just so y'all know, I think that's very important information. Also, the setting of this chapter is where I spend a lot of my summers because I've got family there, so it's like semi accurate.

Krissy was just trying to hunt a ghost before it killed anyone. A simple salt and burn, sent to her by one of her contacts, an older, kinda skivvy hunter who she didn’t really want to be around or talk to, ever, but she needed all the support she could get. But of course, it was too simple, too easy. The universe didn’t like her enough to give her a simple, easy case. Back to back to back hunts, she had to drop her fraudulent credit cards after almost being caught and hadn’t had the chance to get more so she couldn’t afford to stay anywhere but her car and now Dean Winchester. At this point, she shouldn’t even be surprised. She didn’t want to see him, especially when he was on a romantic getaway. But, there’s not anything she can do except deal with the ghost before he even realizes there is one, all while avoiding him and his boyfriend/husband/whoever the hell the other man is, and then get out of town. Yeah, should be easy. 

\----

That plan goes to shit right away. She was at the Manor, questioning the receptionist, flirting with her a little, cause if you can’t mix business and pleasure then what’s the point when Dean and his boy toy come in carrying suitcases. She makes a run for it, dismissing herself rather abruptly from the receptionist and turning the corner in hopes of escaping Dean. And it worked, kinda. He definitely didn’t see her but she could still hear him, and they could definitely still hear her if she were to make too much noise from where she was, standing around the corner. 

“Cas, Babe,” so the boyfriend's name is Cas, she guesses that was good to know, even if she was planning on avoiding them until the hunt is over. “I know you said you wanted to climb the dune climb tonight but, Bee, I’m tired from the drive, and were on a lake, we could go swimming, eat dinner here, and make some magic,” he said with a wiggle of his eyebrows, completely unashamed of himself. Jesus Christ, she really can’t believe he just said that. And Cas’s response, a raised eyebrow that visibly flustered Dean, making him blush bright red.

“Okay, but you’re going to have to make it up to me,” the eyebrow was still raised, and the response deepened Dean’s blush but a smirk did appear on his face, “And we’ll hike it tomorrow, all the way to Lake Michigan and back to the impala, no matter how sore you are.” Ugh, Krissy really did not need this much information about old men’s sex life. With that, they turned the corner, finally far enough for her to make her escape without being seen and try to forget what she had heard.

\----

The second time she saw them she was sitting outside Cherry Republic with her computer, trying to steal the wifi and research the Manor, figure out who died there, or what could be left behind that was holding a spirit there. So far there was no information, the wifi was spotty, and she had to hope that Dean wouldn’t see her, getting up now would reveal her and make her even easier to spot. At least this time she wasn’t close enough to hear their conversation.

They were disgustingly cute together, sharing fries, drinking wine, something she didn’t think Dean would have done before, with all his toxic masculinity and shit, and laughing loudly, clearly besotted with each other. Honestly, it was kinda gross, seeing anyone that in love, especially someone she had always seen as the all-American tough guy that would never be with a man, let alone act like he was. 

This case was turning out to be the most frustrating one she had ever done. Little information, avoiding Dean Winchester, and not having reliable wifi was making this case so much harder and increasing the chances of an innocent bystander getting hurt.

\----

The third time she saw Dean Winchester, she was being held against the wall of the hallway in the Manor by the ghost. He was an old man, the original owner. The renovations had awoken him and now he was angry that his place was being changed and was taking it out on the employees and guests. 

Dean must have heard the commotion on the way back to his room and ran in, gun drawn. He fires, the ghost disappearing just long enough for him to grab the iron rod that she had brought with her and send him away. Giving them enough time to run out of the room and escape.

As soon as they were safe, both from the ghost and possible arrest for firing a gun in a bed and breakfast, Dean turned to her, looking furious. “What the hell Krissy, you said you wouldn’t go looking for hunts, that you would stay with the others and not get yourself killed like a dumbass.”

“Yeah, well, I’m an adult if you haven’t noticed, I can make my own decisions, and I decided I want to hunt,” Krissy yells, feeling defensive and not wanting to get into what actually got her back into hunting. She had been out but things changed, and now she's back and hunting alone.

“I wouldn’t be as pissed if you weren’t hunting along, Jesus Christ kid, are you trying to get yourself killed?”

“I can handle a ghost by myself, and in case you didn’t notice, old man, you’re the one that’s been staying in a haunted hotel and didn’t even know it.” 

“Yeah, well,” at that he trails off, clearly not having a defense, “Wait, how did you even know that I’ve been staying here?”

“I’ve been dodging you and your boy toy all weekend, I’m honestly surprised you didn’t notice me. Anyway I’ve got this covered, I know who it is I just have to dig the grave and then I’ll leave you and your boyfriend alone and you’ll never have to see me again.”

“Like hell you will, I’ll finish this hunt and you’re gonna go back to your motel room and sit there until it’s over and I’ll come and talk more than, give you a more permanent place to crash until you can find a job and get out of hunting.”

“No way man, this is my hunt and I’ve got it handled. And, in case you didn’t notice, I’m good, I’ve been hunting alone for a year and nothing's happened yet.”

“Really, you want to say you’re good, if I hadn’t heard that fucking ghost you would have been dead.”

“Know what, fine! I’ll let you help on this case, but that’s it, I’m in the lead and I call the shots,”

“Fine.”

\----

Later that night, Krissy was sitting on the grass hearing the grunts of men too old to be digging graves breaking their backs to try to take care of this fucking ghost. It’s actually pretty funny and she’s glad she has them to dig even if she's still pissed as hell at Dean for treating her like a child. Like really, what an asshole, he leaves her alone, promising that some guy named Garth will check up with them only he never does. Not after the first time. And then…

“Okay, we're done, hand me the salt so we can torch the sucker,” Dean says, breaking her out of her stupor. She gets up and starts to pour the salt on the bones, totally ignoring his hand, held open, waiting to be handed the salt. Before she could get the gas on the bones and light them up the fucking ghost appears, sending her, Dean, and Cas across the graveyard. Cas hitting his head and passing out, blood dripping down his face, Dean yells out, not from his own pain but in worry for Cas. And Krissy hits the ground, hard, knocking the wind out of her. As she sits there, struggling to breathe, a few feet away from an unconscious Cas, Dean is putting the gas on the fire and dropping a set of lit matches in all while shooting rock salt rounds at the fucking asshole trying to hurt them. Honestly, it’s pretty terrifying, his intensity and the speed he gets the job done and gets over to Cas. He holds his face, trying desperately to wake him up, the scene all too familiar to Krissy, having been in Dean’s spot only a few years ago. Her friends laying limp in her arms, but not from what’s probably a minor head injury, from blood loss. There was nothing she could do but Dean has a chance. Cas groaning with pain but clearly awake shocks Krissy out of her thoughts. 

“Krissy come over here and help me get him to the car.” As much as Krissy wants to protest, say he wasn’t in charge here, still trying so hard to be mad at him, she can’t, seeing his desperation. 

They struggle to get him to the car, Cas stumbling with his arms over their shoulders, holding him up. He’s awake but in pain. It’s not like they can take him to the hospital, he doesn’t even need it. A bump on the back of his head and a small cut on his forehead causing bleeding, but he’s awake and seems to know what’s going on, where he is, who he is. Still, Dean is frantic, he can’t calm down too worried about Cas.

“Dean, calm down, as much as I don’t like you right now he’s going to be fine. It’s at most a minor concussion. He’ll be okay.” Krissy tries to comfort, it doesn’t do much, Dean still fussing over Cas, who’s sitting in the back seat, fully conscious and clearly annoyed by Dean’s overprotectiveness. 

“Yeah, Yeah, I know. But I’ve seen him die too many times, seen him hurt too many times. I can’t do it again, I --” Dean trails off, Krissy doesn’t know what he was going to say, too caught up on the fact that Cas has been dead before, apparently. But he’s sitting there alive, not necessarily completely fine, head injury and all, but okay. 

“Back up dude, you’ve seen him die, but he’s not dead, he’s sitting there, alive, talking, all that shit. How’s that work.” Krissy tries not to let the hope creep into her voice. But when Dean’s face softens, looking apologetic, she knows it didn’t work.

“Krissy, I don’t know who you lost but, Cas coming back, it was a one-time deal. It won’t happen again, I’m sorry.” He sounded genuinely sorry, but Krissy didn’t want to hear it, she just wanted her friends back.

“That’s not fair, why does he get to come back, why do you get to have him back. I just, I want my friends back.” She didn’t want to cry in front of him, especially over something that happened years ago. Krissy knew it wasn’t his fault but it was so easy to blame him. Leaving them unattended, promising some guy will check on them but he never did and her friends died because of it. She wanted so bad to be angry, but she wasn’t, she was just so sad, and missed her friends so much. 

“Krissy, I’m so sorry, about your friends. Aiden and Josephine, right? I wish I could make it better, but I can’t,”

“We were fine, living our lives, but then you butted in and that dude you said would check in on us never did. Never even called. And it got them killed, there was a hunt, werewolves, and they were attacked, killed, and I had to hold them while they died, and then spend the next day hunting the werewolves before they could get out of town.” Sometimes while telling her story she had started crying. Looking out the window at the dark woods, she tried once again to truly be angry at Dean, but it wasn’t actually his fault, it was just easier to blame someone than actually deal with the pain. 

“Kid, I’m so sorry, I should have checked up on you myself, kept y’all safe. I don’t know how to make it up to you.” Dean pauses at this. “I’ll buy you a room for the night, I know you haven’t slept in a bed in a while, I use to do that too, spend weeks in a car cause I didn’t have the money to find a bed. Then in the morning, I’ll help you find somewhere to go. I just have to make a few calls first.”

Krissy really did want to hate him, and she had, until then, he was being so nice to her, buying her a room, finding her a place to stay. “Yeah okay, but I still want to hunt. I won’t stop doing that just cuz you say so.”

“Yeah, kid, I know, all I ask is that you don’t hunt alone, find a partner. I have someone in mind but I don’t know how y’all will get along, you’re pretty similar.” After that they go silent, reaching the bed and breakfast they were staying at and Dean buying her a room for the night, making her promise not to skip out during the night. She probably would have earlier that day but, the promise of a home, a place to crash, having people that care about her, was too good to pass up. Not that’d she’d ever tell Dean that.

\----

Krissy swears that that was the best night’s sleep she has had in years. She was finally looking forward to where her life was going. Dean had sent her off with two addresses. One for a house in Sioux Falls, North Dakota, where he said his friend Jody and her wife, Donna, had a home for wayward girls who’re part of the life. Hunters, physics, dream walkers. It was a sort of home base for these girls, giving them a home and family, people that cared about them.

The other was a bar in Lebanon, Kansas. He said it was a hunter’s bar that he and Cas ran, a central base for hunters to get hunts, take a break, find someone to hunt with, and access to the biggest collection of lore in the US. It’s weird to think about the legendary Dean Winchester settling down. Owning a bar with the man he loves all while still helping hunters and keeping people safe. But it was good. And it gave her hope for her own “happy ending.” 


	4. the hunter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> cw: mild homophobia
> 
> I will put a chapter summary at the end if y'all want to read that instead of the chapter

Tim was exhausted. His body ached, deep bruises from being thrown around by a ghost, scratches running down his arms and back from a werewolf, a cut down his face where he’d gotten too close to a shapeshifter. It’s been too long since he’d taken a break, the cases just rolling in one after another with no end in sight. Even now, there was a windigo attacking people up in Minnesota waiting for him. So, as he drove, the bar that was lit up in the distance was a fucking oasis. Allowing him a break, just for the night to let go and forget about all the monsters.

The bar was packed, surprising for a town this size. A group of girls in the back laughing loudly and having a good time. Two men playing pool together talking with another group playing darts. Everything was normal at first glance, people talking loudly about everything and nothing, playing games, relaxing. But the longer Tim sat at the bar, overhearing people's conversations, it seemed they were all hunters, people shouting objections to a man's claim of taking on a nest of 10 vamps all by himself. Another group argued about the best way to gank a rugaru. The most bizarre thing though was the absence of the solemness and vengeance that usually hung heavy in a hunter’s bar. At least the ones he’d been to. People here seemed to genuinely enjoy the job and the company.

Someone cleared their throat in front of him forcing him to look up and he was faced with someone he never thought he’d see again, Dean Winchester. Tim had thought he would be long dead by now. And more than that he was behind the bar, apron around his waist and looking ready to take his order, not remembering him. 

“I’ll be damned, if it’s not Dean Winchester, I thought you'd be dead by now boy.” Dean looks confused, no recognition on his face. Tim’s not surprised, he’d only meet him once 25 years ago on a hunt with John when Dean met up with them. He and John had worked together many times, though, and John would never shut up about his boys, how Dean was so much like him and how Sammy went off to school. “Tim Johnson, I used to hunt with your Daddy. We only met once, worked that Skinwalker case together.”

“Yeah, I remember that, god that must have been 25 years ago now. Damn man, how you’ve been.”

“Busy, I’ve ganked a ghost, werewolf, and a shifter in the last two weeks and I’m heading to Minnesota to get a Windigo.” Dean handed him a beer, Tim remembers that it was the one that John had preferred. It tasted like piss but he wasn’t going to turn down free alcohol. “Thanks.”

“It’s my job.”

“Have you hunted anything recently? With working here and all.”

“Not on purpose, I helped one of the hunter kids I know deal with a ghost while on a vacation with Cas. Mostly I find hunts and give them to the people here, and help them solve stuff, Sammy’s running a supernatural library with his fiancee a couple of miles from here, I send them over there for research help and shit.” 

“Damn, Dean Winchester, settling down. Never would have thought.” Tim was shocked. He never thought, in all of his 64 years, that you could stop hunting. He never wanted to, even if it made him miserable. 

“Yeah well, I don’t regret it, not even a little. It’s been the best decision of my life.” Dean’s eyes drift around the room, taking in the hunters he’s helping, providing a place to rest, relax, and recuperate, pride and accomplishment shining in his eyes. Suddenly his demeanor changes, he lights up, eyes shining with love, “Bee, you’re back. Did you get the limes?”

A deep, gruff voice sounds behind Tim, surprising him, making him turn. He was expecting something different, higher, and distinctly more feminine. “Yes, Dean,” sounding exasperated, eyes rolling so far back you could see the whites of his eyes. “I got the limes, not like I could forget, being the only thing I had to go to the store for.”

“No need to be snarky, sweetheart, now give me some sugar,” Dean says, cheek turning to the man, waiting for a kiss. He does it, looking tired but just as in love as Dean. Not that Tim wants to admit it.

“Your dad would have been so disappointed, having a fairy as a son,” Tim said before he could stop himself. They turned towards him. The other man, who had to be Cas, furious, eyes glowing, standing stiff, holding himself back. And Dean, hurt and angry.

“Get out.” Cas said, voice deathly calm. Sending chills down Tim's spine. But he wouldn’t be told what to do by a fucking queer.

“Yeah, no, and what are you gonna do about it?” Tim eggs, not realizing the bar had gone silent at Cas’ words. Everyone holding their breaths, trying to figure out what prompted his outburst.

“I’ll tell you again, maybe you didn’t hear me the first time. Get out.”

“No. I won’t be told what to do by a fruit. You can’t do anything to me. Not with all these people around.”

“Oh, you want to tempt fate. I said. Get. Out. This is your last warning.” His voice was still calm, a deadly edge to it. It’s clear that he’s killed for less than this and he won’t hesitate to kill him. Even with all these witnesses.

Tim stubbornly sits there but he feels hands wrapping themselves around his arms and picking him up. Some of the hunters that had been sitting at the bar near him dragging him towards the door. He’s thrown out, landing in a puddle on his ass. As the doors close he sees Cas turn towards Dean and pull him into a hug, more tender than he thought possible. Everyone in the bar looked away, glaring at him and minding their business like something against God wasn’t going on in front of their eyes. 

\----

A week later, Tim awoke in a Dark throne room, staring at the face of a short, regal redhead with a thick Scottish accent after being ripped apart by a windigo.

“So lad, do you know where you are?” Tim looks around, confused. He thought he’d be in heaven, having saved all those people throughout his life as a hunter, but his view of heaven wasn’t matching up with his surroundings. “I’ll tell you then, you’re in hell. I guess God doesn’t take too kindly to men insulting his fathers over being happy with each other.”

Tim was confused, nothing was making sense. How the hell did he get to hell? God has parents? How did he insult them? Until it came rushing back. The night at the bar, where he’d got thrown out. “I don’t take too kindly to it either, to be honest. They’re my boys, you know, and insulting them has some pretty severe punishments here. John Winchester will never get a rest, never have an opportunity for respite or repentance for what he did to those boys and you won’t either.” With that terrifying statement, he was dragged away, everything going black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Summary: One of John's old hunting buddies, Tim, comes across Rocky's where Dean is working. They catch up for a little bit and Cas comes back. It's clear that Dean and Cas are in a relationship and Tim makes so remarks. He dies and goes to hell where he's greeted by Rowena and promised an eternity of torture.


	5. the guardian

Looking at Noah is like looking into a window to the past. The fading bruises. The occult symbols carved into the bed. The shifty way his eyes move, scanning for the exits, worried about how he would escape if something attacked. The too close examination of windows and doors, like something vital, was missing. Sonny’s only seen it once before, a kid that he will remember forever, who was calling out for help, wanting to escape from under his father’s thumb but unable to, held in place by the crippling need to protect his brother. So he does the only thing he can and calls up Dean. Desperate to help this kid the way he couldn't help him.

\----

The phone rings four times before Dean finally picks up. “Hey, Sonny, what’s up?” There is a dull roar of a bar in the background, people talking and laughing, glasses clinking together, old music playing.

“Not much, but I’ve got a kid here that I think could really benefit from your help,” at this he pauses, almost scared to get into why he thinks Dean specifically can help, but he presses on. He needs to protect this kid, keep him away from the dangerous world of hunting and his abusive father. “His dad left him alone in a motel room for a couple of weeks and the money ran out. He got busted stealing, just the basics to keep himself from starving. I wouldn’t have called if it was just a case of an abusive, neglectful father but -- this same kid has been carving occult symbols on his bed, similar to the ones you used to.” Sonny sighs, and Dean interrupts.

“You think he’s a hunter, or the kid of one at least.”

“Yeah, I think it’d be helpful if you could talk to him, share your experience. Tell him it gets better, that hunting doesn’t have to be your whole life.”

“Yeah, yeah, of course, man. I don’t know how much help I’ll be but I’ll try, I owe you that much. Just give me a few days to get things sorted and drive up there.”

And, with a quick goodbye, Dean hung up, with a promise to try and do something to help the poor kid.

\----

Sonny was in the kitchen preparing for dinner when the doorbell rang. “Jacob, go get the door,” he yelled into the other room where Jacob was setting the table. A couple of seconds later he heard the door open and the low rumble of voices.

“Sonny, some guys are here to see you,” Jacob calls, the eye roll barely concealed in his voice. 

“D-dog, how’ve you been?” Reaching out to pull Dean into a hug, “and who’s this?” There's another man with Dean, tall, only a couple inches shorter than Dean, with dark, messy hair, wide shoulders, and kind face, wrinkles around his eyes from smiling.

“Sonny, this is Cas, my,” there’s a nervous pause, clearly not knowing how he’s going to respond, “partner.” Just from the way Dean says it Sonny knows he doesn’t mean a hunting partner.

“Well, nice to meet you Cas. We’re having chili for dinner and I need some help wrangling all the boys inside and getting their hands washed. Could y’all do that while I finish up? I’ll introduce you to Noah after.'' Sonny's reaction visibly eases Dean’s mind, shoulders untensing and posture relaxing. His reaction clearly important, knowing about his Dad he’s probably had a rough time letting go of what was drilled into his head as a kid.

“Yeah, of course, man,” While the younger men were outside corraling the boys inside he took a moment to reflect. It shouldn’t have surprised him as much as it did that Dean’s partner was a man. Always trying so hard to be the big man, tough, never showing any emotion, despite it being obvious he wanted more. To be able to look at boys the same way he did girls, even in the few months Dean stayed at the house Sonny had picked up on it.

\----

Dinner was a short affair, it always is with a house of growing boys tired from long hours of school, sports, and chores. Sonny did a basic introduction at dinner, saying Dean was one of the boys who used to stay here and he’d be here for a day or two, helping out with his partner Cas. At first, they didn’t really know how to act around these strange men who no one could get a good read on but quickly warmed up to them, by the end of dinner the boys were joking around with the men but ready to go off on their own.

“Hey, Hey, wait, before y'all go do your thing you need to take care of your dishes and help clean the table. And Noah after clean up I want you to come talk with me.” Noah's face dropped but did as he was told cleaning up and joining them in the living room.

Dean’s the first to break the awkward silence in the room that fell when Noah walked in. “Sup, kid. Hey, you don’t have to look so scared, we don’t bite, not like whatever you’re daddy’s hunting.” Noah's eyes widened, popping out of his skull, looking like they were about to fall out and his jaw touched the floor.

“How, how did you know my dad is hunting, wait, wait, how do you even know about monsters.” The kid was stuttering so bad it was almost impossible to understand what he was saying. “ Did my dad send you? Are you gonna send me back, please don’t send me back he’s gonna kill me.” It’s like the flood gates had opened, Sonny had never heard the kid talk this much, let alone to new people.

Dean could clearly tell too, soothing the kids worry, putting his hands up “Noah, man, it’s okay, I don’t even know who you’re dad is, Sonny called me up because I did the same things you are doing when I stayed here, the symbols on my bed, the salt lines. He wanted me to talk to you, see how we can help. Anyway, I feel that proper introductions are in order, not the bull shit that Sonny told the other boys at dinner. I’m Dean Winche--.”

The kid’s eyes grow wide again and he interrupts dean, talking too loud in his aw “You’re Dean Winchester, everyone talks about you all the time, you’re the best hunter the world has ever seen, you’ve defeated God, and, and you must be Castiel, cuz if you’re not Sam, which you’re not cuz you were introduced as Cas at dinner, so you’re an angel and you’ve killed so many demons and you guys saved the world like 50 times.” He stops suddenly, clearly embarrassed but continues quieter, “You’re my heroes.”

Dean and Cas shifted, uncomfortable, not knowing how to react to this kid looking up to them. It’s obvious that they don’t feel like they’re worthy of the kid's praise, but if even half of what he said was true they deserve it all and more. “Back on track, kid. I called them here cuz I think there needs to be someone to finish your Dad’s case.” Sonny pauses, clearly dreading what he has to say next, “I don’t think your Dad made it, There was a John Doe reported by the police matching his description, and.”

Noah looks apologetic, maybe, but not devastated, not even sad really. Not how you would expect a kid to react to their father's death. “I know I should be sad, or, or, I don’t know, upset or something, but honestly, I’m kinda relieved, Sonny. I know you know what he did to me, I came here covered in bruises, he hit me and I’m not sorry he’s gone, honestly, I’m kinda glad, even if that’s wrong. I’ll never be hit again, not by him.”

Sonny should be more surprised by that than he was. A lot of kids here have problems with abuse, and he’s gotten used to it. It’s clear Dean and Cas aren’t surprised either, Dean having his own trouble with his father.

“We’ll go take care of his hunt, it’s not far from here, right?” Dean’s looked at it, what Sonny could find of it anyway, and thinks it’s probably Vetala, whatever that is. “We’ll come back tomorrow, they shouldn’t be too hard to sort out between the two of us and we’ll find a more permanent place for Noah to stay.”

Sonny agreed that Noah couldn’t stay here forever. It was a great place for boys to stay but a hunters kid, someone that knew the life that those boys lived, would have trouble staying still. Plus, he saw how Dean and Cas were with him, kind, caring, everything a kid needs to thrive.

\----

When Dean and Cas came back they were covered in blood and obviously exhausted but happy, satisfied with a hunt well done. They had called Sonny before they pulled up, making sure that the coast was clear and none of the boys would see them if they came in and showered. 

“Before you crash for the night can we talk?” Sonny asked. 

“Yeah, Sonny, of course.”

He wanted to talk to them without the threat of Noah overhearing them, in case they didn’t want to take him in, or thought they weren’t ready for that, or just didn’t want to be parents at all. But Sonny thought Dean would be a great dad, from how he protected the boys last time and Sam when he was a child. And Cas, his interactions with the boys, he was a natural. Caring and patient. Ready to help them and keep them safe.

He was startled out of his thoughts when Dean made his way down the stairs “Cas is showering, he’ll be down in like ten minutes. Should we wait for him or…”

“No, he should be here,” an awkward silence filled the room, neither man quite sure how to continue this conversation until, “So, tell me about this hunt? What happened?”

Dean proceeded to talk about the hunt like it was a milk run, like it didn’t get an experienced hunter killed. He was trying to make it seem like it wasn’t a big deal that he and Cas dealt with it in a single night without any injuries beyond a few minor bruises that would be gone in a week or two. Sonny was in awe of these men, who could comfort a kid but not take praise. Who could be so caring for each other and every person they encounter and defeat monsters who have killed tens of people if not more without injury. 

Cas walks down the stairs just as Dean’s story wraps up, dressed in an old zeppelin shirt that probably belonged to Dean at some point and sweatpants, hair still wet from the shower, but clean and relaxed. 

“Now that Cas is here, what was it that you wanted to talk to us about?” Dean says, as Cas sits down next to him and puts his arm around Dean’s shoulder. Dean tucking his head into Cas’ shoulder, unapologetically soft around each other. All this further convincing Sonny that asking them to take in Noah is the right thing to do. Giving that kid a safe and loving place to grow up.

“Yeah, uh, it’s about Noah, the kid’s been through a lot, I know you can tell, and he doesn’t open up easily. And I’m not sure that he’s gonna be able to stay here, especially when he’s so young, I could probably pull some strings but -- this isn’t what the kid deserves,” Sonny takes a deep breath, not scared to ask or anything but unsure how the men across from him are going to react. “I was wondering if you guys wanted to take him in, you know adopt him and give him a safe place to grow up. He’s connected you y’all so quick and I know that he would love to have you as his family.”   
  


“Uhhh, can you give us a minute to think about it? I don’t want to say anything without making sure we're on the same page and everything,” asked Dean. Cas looks down at him, proud of him for the surprisingly (at least to Sonny) emotional and thought out response.

“Yeah D-dog, of course.” With that Sonny stepped out of the room, going to the kitchen, nothing to do but wait. He was too far away to hear what they were saying clearly but every once in a while he would hear something. The names Jack and Claire, about Rocky’s, about hunting, but overall it seems promising, that they’re leaning more towards taking him in over leaving him here.

\----

They call him in about half an hour later, “So what’s the verdict? You willing to take him in?”

“Yeah, Sonny, I think we are.” Dean is beaming, Cas too. Ready to start another part of their lives where they’re raising a kid together. It’s going to take them some time to figure out how they’re going to do everything, but they’re ready to do it. To raise a kid together, help them with their homework, and friend drama, and first love, and heartbreak. They’re so excited to be this kid's Dads.

They talk for another hour. About how they’re going to get the paperwork to do this (a friend called Charlie will make papers). About where he’s going to go to school (there’s a school close to where they live that they’ll enroll him in when they get back and have his papers). About how Noah is going to take it and how he will adjust (they’ll do anything to help him adjust and keep him safe). By the time they’re done talking it’s well past midnight and they’re all holding back yawns, promising to talk with Noah in the morning.

\----

Noah is beyond excited the next morning when he’s told that they will be adopting him. Running up the stairs and packing his stuff at lightning speed. Sonny wasn’t surprised, Noah had bonded with the men quickly, seeing them as paternal figures so quickly it made Sonny’s head spin. 

After they had packed the Impala with Noah's stuff, ate lunch, and allowed him to say goodbye to the other boys and the few friends he had made in the last two weeks that he’d been there. They piled into the car saying one last goodbye to Sonny with promises of updates and pictures and take off. Towards Lebanon, Kansas, and their future as a family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ik this chapter doesn't make much sense and I didn't edit it cuz I was struggling to get through it but I hope y'all liked it. If you want to tell me you're thoughts on it or advice to get through writer's block the comment section is open.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope y'all enjoyed this. Thanks for reading.
> 
> Kudos and comments are much appreciated.


End file.
